


on your sleeve

by fangirl_squee



Category: Friends at the Table (Podcast)
Genre: Other, mako does the mesh equivalent of vaugeposting but with clothing
Language: English
Status: Completed
Published: 2017-07-26
Updated: 2017-07-26
Packaged: 2018-12-07 05:54:06
Rating: General Audiences
Warnings: No Archive Warnings Apply
Chapters: 1
Words: 1,688
Publisher: archiveofourown.org
Story URL: https://archiveofourown.org/works/11617317
Author URL: https://archiveofourown.org/users/fangirl_squee/pseuds/fangirl_squee
Summary: Mako is obvious, Cass is oblivious, Aria and AuDy help out where they can.





	on your sleeve

**Author's Note:**

> this is based on something maddie and I were talking about before I had even started listening to the show, so it's a real 'story by maddie, written by maddie but the other one' situation.
> 
> thanks to maddie, for betaing and for being a fic idea generating machine basically.

Mako stumbles into the kitchen of the Kingdom Come, rubbing sleep from his eyes. He stretches and shifts, mumbling a sleepy greeting to Cass as he heads for the coffee. Cass suppresses the urge to ruffle Mako's tuft of pink hair as Mako passes, instead handing Mako his mug.

 

It's like this between jobs sometimes. Things are quiet, and the air in the ship feels gentle. That's Cass' reasoning for it anyway. 

 

Aria makes an odd sound and Cass turns to look. She’s covering her mouth with her hand, muffling giggles. 

 

Cass frowns. “What?”

 

“Mako's shirt,” says Aria, laughter still in her voice, although she's gotten herself more under control. “You didn't see?”

 

“See what?”

 

Mako turns around. His t-shirt is physically plain, but when Cass switches their vision to the mesh, they can see the picture on it. 

 

It's a photo of them, frowning at something off camera. The picture is a little blurry, like the shot was taken in a hurry, and it’s pixelated from being blown up to cover the entire front of Mako's shirt, but it's unmistakably them, their green skin filtered to be a bit brighter than in person. 

 

“What,” says Cass. 

 

Mako shrugs, and takes a sip of his coffee.

 

Cass takes a deep breath in, holds it for a moment, and then lets it out again. They chalk it up to being a youth culture thing they don't understand, and do their best to ignore Aria's giggles about it for the rest of the day. 

 

_ At least _ , thinks Cass,  _ it's a somewhat flattering photo.  _

 

The next image is not so flattering. 

 

"How did you even  _ get _ this photo?” says Cass, staring at the pixelated image of themselves, mouth full of pasta, half-turned away from the camera. 

 

"You eat pasta all the time,” says Mako. “It was pretty easy.”

 

“You're not going to wear this  _ outside _ , are you?”

 

“Why not?” says Mako. “If people ask, I'll tell them it's ironic propaganda.”

 

“That's not--I don't think something like this would ever have been used for propaganda,” says Cass doubtfully. 

 

Mako frowns, holding the shirt away from his body to look at the image. “Why not?”

 

Aria chooses that moment to walk in. She takes one look at the shirt and bursts out laughing. 

 

Cass gestures to Aria. “Thanks Aria. Exactly.”

 

“I think it's a good photo,” says Mako. 

 

“Of course  _ you _ do,” says Aria. 

 

“Cass looks happy when they eat pasta!” says Mako, his gestures wide and twitchy. “People look more handsome when they're happy! Handsome people look good in photos! It's just  _ scientific,  _ Aria.”

 

“Sure,” says Aria. 

 

Cass feels like they stepped into the end of a wildly different conversation, despite being the subject of it. 

 

“I'd just rather that you...didn't,” says Cass. 

 

Mako sighs. “Fine.”

 

The image flickers, going static before being replaced by another image of them, asleep in the ship's lounge area.

 

“ _ Aww _ ,” says Aria. 

 

“Better?” says Mako pointedly. 

 

“I--yes?” says Cass. 

 

Mako nods, the sound of the Ring of Saturn’s thrusters echoing in the ship's corridors as he heads out. 

 

-

 

Mako doesn't wear The Shirts, as Cass has been ominously thinking of them in their head, every day. It almost feels like Mako is playing some long-game prank on them, but Cass cannot, for the life of them, think what the endgame would be.

 

Mako flops down onto the chair next to Cass, watching them for a moment as they scroll through wanted ads. The Cass on the front of his shirt is grinning wildly, their hand a blur at Mako's hemline as their gesture is lost to the camera. 

 

The thing that  _ really _ gets to Cass about it is that Mako never  _ says _ anything about the shirts. He’ll talk about them if prompted but otherwise they’re just there, the blurry image of Cass’s own face staring back at them. 

 

Maybe the endgame is driving Cass into insanity via frustration. People have gone mad for less. 

 

“So,” says Mako, “what's up.”

 

“I don't have a job lined up yet,” says Cass. “I told you all this morning, when I get one you'll know.”

 

“No I mean,” Mako leans forward, “what's up with  _ you _ . Like, in general.”

 

“We live in the same ship,”says Cass, “you know what's up with me.”

 

“And that is… ?”

 

“Trying to get us another job,” says Cass. 

 

“Right, yeah.” Mako drums his fingers along the table. “So, uh. What are you up to later? Like in general.”

 

“Probably still this, unless I find a job,” says Cass. They rub their head. 

 

“Cool, that's, uh. That's cool. I was going to go out later, get dinner or something,” says Mako, “if you wanted anything. Like, to eat.”

 

“With what money?” says Cass. 

 

Mako shrugs. “I'll just fog a machine somewhere.”

 

Cass sighs. “Try not to get yourself arrested.”

 

“Cass, come on.” says Mako, “I'm too good to get caught like  _ that _ .”

 

They click on a job that seems promising, reading through slowly. When they look up to say something else to Mako, he's already gone. 

 

-

 

The thing about that  _ really  _ bugs Cass about the shirts is their wide variety. Mako is yet to repeat a photo, but Cass has never managed to catch him taking one. Mako is even  _ in  _ some of the photos, a hand on Cass’ shoulder or peering around from behind them. 

 

“I took today's,” says AuDy, voice disinterested, attention focused on piloting. 

 

“You-- _ why _ ?”

 

“Aria said that it would be funny.” AuDy pauses. “It is.”

 

Cass groans. 

 

Right. Aria. If she's encouraging Mako then she can help them stop this nonsense. 

 

-

 

“No,” scoffs Aria. 

 

She only briefly pauses from where she's doing some kind of elaborate eye makeup - big wings of eyeliner forming the outer edges of a mask design. 

 

“It's been _months,”_ says Cass. “Wouldn't you rather see your own face on his dumb shirts?”

 

“I've already had that happen,” says Aria, “so I'm good actually.”

 

“Right,” says Cass, “Then you should understand how I feel. If you can't get him to stop, at  _ least  _ stop helping him take them.”

 

Aria sets down her eyeliner brush, meeting their eyes in the mirror. “Cass. Do you know why people get shirts with other people's faces on them?”

 

Cass scrubs a hand over their face. “I don't know, to drive them crazy?”

 

Aria huffs a laugh. “No. Because they  _ love _ them, and they want them to know and they want everyone they meet to know it too.”

 

Cass blinks at her. “What.”

 

“Some people send cards, or write songs” says Aria, “Other people wear it on a t-shirt.”

 

Cass is quiet for a long moment.

 

“So when he said I looked handsome that time…”

 

“I'm glad you're catching up,” says Aria, beaming at them. “Now, what are you going to  _ do  _ about it?”

 

-

 

Cass takes a deep breath before they walk into the common room. They're not as good with the mesh as Mako is, so there's a chance that what they're about to do just won't work. They take another deep breath. The door slides open. 

 

Aria, AuDy, and Mako look up as Cass enters. Mako's shirt today is of Cass pointing to something in the direction of Mako's left shoulder. Cass ignores it as best they can, nodding to them. They lean past Mako to pour themselves a coffee, take a sip, and put the mug down on the counter. So far, so good.

 

Then, in a practised motion, they slip their jacket off their shoulders. 

 

Someone behind them  _ gasps _ .

 

On the back of their shirt is a moving image of Mako on the Ring of Saturn. It was hard to get the footage and even harder to compress into something that would loop properly on their shirt, but it’s worth it. Cass can't see it, but they know the Mako in the image is grinning to himself as he makes a slow loop around the loading bay of the Kingdom Come. 

 

Cass swallows hard, trying to school their face into something more impassive before they turn around. 

 

“What,” says Mako, faintly. 

 

“Oh, hey, AuDy, can you show me that thing we talked about?” says Aria, standing suddenly. 

 

“What thing?” says AuDy. 

 

“The thing, you know,” says Aria, pulling at AuDy’s shoulder. “Come on.”

 

“I don't--” AuDy huffs, “Fine.”

 

The room is quiet after Aria and AuDy leave. Cass forces themself not to look away from Mako.

 

“That's, uh, that's me, on your shirt,” says Mako. 

 

“Yes,” says Cass. 

 

“It's uh. That's cool?” says Mako. 

 

Cass’s hand tighten around their mug. “Yes.”

 

“It, um, if we went out together now, we'd match.” says Mako.

 

“We match in the ship too,” says Cass, “we can match everywhere, if you’d like.”

 

Mako bites his lip. Very, very slowly, he leans up towards Cass. Cass is more than happy to meet him halfway, setting their mug down on the counter so that they can run their hands through Mako's bright hair. It’s as soft as they’ve always thought.

 

Mako sighs, his hands slipping under their shirt, tracing lighting along their skin. 

 

They're both breathing hard by the time they break apart. 

 

“So, uh, hey,” says Mako, “I was thinking of going out later, for dinner? Or something?”

 

“Sounds great,” says Cass, “I guess you can always fog a machine if you need to.”

 

Mako laughs, and leans in again. 

 

-

 

Mako stumbles into the kitchen of the Kingdom Come, rubbing sleep from his eyes and stretching his arms above his head. He mumbles a sleepy greeting to Cass, going up on tiptoes to press a soft kiss to the corner of Cass's mouth. Cass smiles, ruffling Mako's hair.

 

Behind them, Aria makes a noise of surprise. This time though, they already know what it's about. 

 

The image on Makos shirt is clearer this time, taken at a weird angle. Mako’s in the photo with them too this time, tucked in close to Cass and winking at the camera. Mako glances down at his shirt, then back up at Cass. 

 

“You look good in this one,” says Mako. 

 

“People look more handsome when they're happy,” says Cass. “I've been told it's science.”

 

**Author's Note:**

> come say hi: mariusperkins, on most places


End file.
